So it's those statements of Jesus that tell you it's true? Because those concepts all existed long before Christianity. If I could show you that they existed in an older religion, would that cause you to switch?
Again; gaining 'hope' is not the same as gaining 'proof'. Do you care whether the things you believe are true, or do you not? Your statement that you don't need archaeology to know it's true tells me that you don't.
Now on this hell issue. Your good buddy Jesus speaks of an eternal fire. He tells you that hell is the most terrible thing that can happen to you. It's all there in Matthew, and don't you try and tell me that it simply means the grave and not existing any more. If you ceased to exist, you wouldn't know about it - so how would this be terrible? I can see why being in heaven with God would be better, but since you'd never get to make the comparison if you simply ceased to exist, it's kind of irrelevant. Revelation tells you that hell is to be cast into a lake of fire on judgement day. If you had just gone into the grave and ceased to exist, and therefore lost all ability to feel pain, why would this matter? This notion that hell is simply going into the ground is nonsense. It means what it says. It's disingenuous of you to claim otherwise. I'm glad you've come to the understanding that the notion of eternal torture is, which means you're one step away from understanding how evil the Bible really is. Revelation explicitly speaks of 'torment for ever and ever'. How can you claim that it means something so benign, when all evidence is to the contrary?
We know you have chosen to trust Jesus' claims. The question is WHY have you done this? What reason do you have? Again, it comes back to whether you care if things you believe are true or not. Also, I'm interested to know, since you said eternal torture would be an evil concept; if it could be shown that the Bible meant to torture sinners for eternity, would you agree that it is evil, or have you created an unfalsifiable position in your mind?
Again; gaining 'hope' is not the same as gaining 'proof'. Do you care whether the things you believe are true, or do you not? Your statement that you don't need archaeology to know it's true tells me that you don't.
Now on this hell issue. Your good buddy Jesus speaks of an eternal fire. He tells you that hell is the most terrible thing that can happen to you. It's all there in Matthew, and don't you try and tell me that it simply means the grave and not existing any more. If you ceased to exist, you wouldn't know about it - so how would this be terrible? I can see why being in heaven with God would be better, but since you'd never get to make the comparison if you simply ceased to exist, it's kind of irrelevant. Revelation tells you that hell is to be cast into a lake of fire on judgement day. If you had just gone into the grave and ceased to exist, and therefore lost all ability to feel pain, why would this matter? This notion that hell is simply going into the ground is nonsense. It means what it says. It's disingenuous of you to claim otherwise. I'm glad you've come to the understanding that the notion of eternal torture is, which means you're one step away from understanding how evil the Bible really is. Revelation explicitly speaks of 'torment for ever and ever'. How can you claim that it means something so benign, when all evidence is to the contrary?
We know you have chosen to trust Jesus' claims. The question is WHY have you done this? What reason do you have? Again, it comes back to whether you care if things you believe are true or not. Also, I'm interested to know, since you said eternal torture would be an evil concept; if it could be shown that the Bible meant to torture sinners for eternity, would you agree that it is evil, or have you created an unfalsifiable position in your mind?
